Contractors must reduce diesel emissions on Pittsburgh projects
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Pittsburgh City Council gave final approval today to clean-air legislation supported by a coalition of city officials, unions, environmentalists and community groups.
Supporters said it was the city's first clean-air bill since the era of late Mayor David Lawrence in the 1940s and '50s.
The bill requires contractors at city-subsidized developments to install pollution-control equipment on all on-road and off-road diesel vehicles.
The requirement applies to projects of $2.5 million or more that involve at least $250,000 in city subsidies.
Councilman Bill Peduto, the bill's sponsor, and other supporters said public money shouldn't be spent on projects that generate enough pollution to endanger public health.
Supporters said the bill wouldn't cure the city's chronic problems with air pollution but would be a step in the right direction. Council also gave final approval to a second bill that requires the city to install pollution-control devices on all of its diesel vehicles within 10 years.
First Published July 12, 2011 11:36 am
